Why do we celebrate communion each month? Communion signifies and makes real the union that exists between Christ and the Church and among believers throughout all space and time. Just as our bodies need sustenance for life, so our spirits need the nourishment of God's grace for discipleship. Just as a meal brings people together as friends and family, so the Lord's table unites all believers in fellowship and ministry. Jesus regularly ate with his disciples, he does the same today. On the night before his death, Jesus spoke of the Passover bread and wine as his body and blood, signs of the covenant that would be based on his death and resurrection. Jesus commanded us to always eat and drink in remembrance of him, and Christians have faithfully obeyed that command. It is appropriate to prepare oneself for communion through prayer, thanksgiving, and reconciliation with God and one another. Renewed at the table by God's sustaining grace, we go out to feed others as we have been fed and look forward to that heavenly banquet when God will wipe away every tear and swallow up death forever. Now you know Why We Do That.
#16: Why Do We Celebrate Communion?
Why do we celebrate communion each month? Communion signifies and makes real the union that exists between Christ and the Church and among believers throughout all space and time. Just as our bodies need sustenance for life, so our spirits need the nourishment of God's grace for discipleship. Just as a meal brings people together as friends and family, so the Lord's table unites all believers in fellowship and ministry. Jesus regularly ate with his disciples, he does the same today. On the night before his death, Jesus spoke of the Passover bread and wine as his body and blood, signs of the covenant that would be based on his death and resurrection. Jesus commanded us to always eat and drink in remembrance of him, and Christians have faithfully obeyed that command. It is appropriate to prepare oneself for communion through prayer, thanksgiving, and reconciliation with God and one another. Renewed at the table by God's sustaining grace, we go out to feed others as we have been fed and look forward to that heavenly banquet when God will wipe away every tear and swallow up death forever. Now you know Why We Do That.